Tuesday, 11 October 2011

In 2011, Greater Noida on Formula One course

It's official. India will host its first Formula 1 Grand Prix on October 30, 2011. The announcement came following an extraordinary meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Paris on Wednesday. The addition of an Indian GP to the F1 calendar will make 2011 a 20-race season, the longest in the history of the sport. According to FIA deadlines, the track needs to be completed by July 30 and it will get a go-ahead subject to FIA homologation.

The 5.14-km track, located on the outskirts of Greater Noida is being built by Noida-based Jaypee Sports International and is designed by German racetrack designer Hermann Tilke, who has designed F1 circuits in Malaysia, Bahrain, China, Turkey, UAE and South Korea.

According to Mark Hughes, vice-president of JPSI, the track will be among the top five in the world as far as average speed is concerned. The average time per lap is expected to be around 1 minute 24 seconds. The track will have straights, quick corners and elevation changes. Hughes assured that the track would be ready by May 31.

FIA delegates will then inspect the safety conditions of the circuit along with the nature of the track surface. The track, which is being built at a cost of $350 million, will have a spectator capacity of 1-1.2 lakh and won't be restricted to Formula 1 races. It's being built to accommodate MotoGP and Superbike races as well.